"What's your name, girl?" The man asked me from his desk.
I picked at the horrid velvet covering on the chair I was situated in. Glozelle was smirking in the corner, obviously taking joy from my annoyance.
"Charlotte McKinley. But, call me Char, if you will." I replied.
The man and woman shared another petty look. The woman scoffed. The man looked back down at his sheet.
"Age?"
I sighed. "What's the point of this ridiculous meeting, Glozelle?" I asked again.
Glozelle shrugged and looked away. "We shouldn't have this meeting, but we're here. There is nothing to do but answer their questions." He told me.
"I'll just guess eighteen." The stupid man stated.
"I'm not eighteen, I'm sixteen!" I replied.
The man sniveled. "Well, it's too late, it's in writing. You'll just have to deal with the consequences of your stupidity."
I took a deep breath and calmed down and smiled at the man. "You mean your stupidity."
The man rolled his eyes and wrote something else down on the paper.
"Are you shy or talkative?" He asked me.
"Talkative, I'd say." quipped the lady.
I rolled my eyes. The man wrote something on the paper.
"What do you like?" He asked.
"Not you." I mumbled.
"What was that, dear one?" Glozelle called from behind.
I clenched my fists. "Nothing."
The man looked back at me. "What is it then? Come on, I haven't got all day."
I glared at him. He shrunk back into his chair.
Glozelle spoke up from behind me once more, "She likes nature, exercise and music."
I turned to face him. "You're speaking with the enemy." I stated.
Glozelle gave me a pointed look. "Yeah, yeah. This is necessary." I replied.
The man wrote more things down on the paper.
"What don't you like?" He asked.
"You." I responded.
Glozelle smacked my arm. "What? I'm being honest!" I replied.
He rolled his eyes. "Charlotte doesn't like dresses, sciences or face paints."
I glared at him. The old man wrote more things down on the paper.
"Alright, we'll get back to you once we've spoken with Lord Miraz and tested her results." The man told us.
The woman gave me a victorious look. I stuck my tongue out at her.
-x-
Glozelle sat at his usual chair, and instead of lying in my bed, I was allowed to sit in the chair facing Glozelle's.
He gave me a dry look. "You don't have to make things so difficult." He told me.
I rolled my eyes. "You don't have to hire incredibly idiotic help." I replied.
Glozelle's flat frown turned into his twisted smile-the one he always gives me when he doesn't want to admit I'm right and laugh-and he shook his head.
"You are impossible. I can only imagine what Lord Sopespian wrote on your sheet."
I snickered. "His name sounds horse-like."
Glozelle snickered too. "I've never thought of that."
I smiled back in a gloating manner. "That's what I'm here for."
Glozelle gave me another dry look(I'd been getting quite a few in the past few days) and looked out the window beside us.
"I wish you weren't to be enrolled." He admitted.
I knew he meant the Royal Guard program.
He looked back at me, a sorrowful sincerity in his eyes. "Why not? It sounds bloody interesting." I asked.
Glozelle shut his eyes and rubbed his face.
"Let's just say I don't believe in it's purpose," He replied, "I find the whole bit-to a certain extent-immoral."
I looked down. "I don't want to know, really." I told him.
Glozelle looked back out the window. "Very well." He said.
I picked at the paint peeling on the wooden table. "Stop picking the paint off, Charlotte." He told me.
I smiled sheepishly. "If it wasn't meant to be picked, it wouldn't stick out of the table!" I replied.
Glozelle laughed a little. Good. He'd been way too serious today.
I grabbed his crossed arms and pulled them to the table. "Arm wrestle?" I asked.
Glozelle smiled his twisted I-don't-want-to-smile-because-I'm-angry-with-you,-Charlotte smile. "Alright," He consented.
I grabbed a hold of his rough hand and started the count down. "3-2-1GO!" I shouted quickly.
Glozelle was taken by surprise again, you'd think he'd be used to that trick by now, and I smacked his hand down on the table.
"That's unfair!" He stated sorrowfully.
I just laughed evilly. "Why don't you go fetch the 'Arm Wrestling Rulebook' and tell me all about it?" I asked.
Glozelle laughed too. "You're such a trickster, Char!" He told me.
"Ahem," A woman's voice echoed through the room.
We turned to find that the Midwife, Henrietta, was standing in the doorway with a silly smile decorating her lovely, caramel face.
"Time to fix your bandages, Charlotte." She told me.
"I should probably-ahem-go tend to my business." Glozelle stated, as he blushed.
I laughed to myself-it was frightfully obvious that Glozelle and Henrietta fancied each other-and motioned for Henrietta to come in.
"We'll chat later, Glozelle." I called down the hallway. He waved his hand.
I turned back to Henrietta, who had set up the clean bandages she brought with her on the table. I sat back in my chair.
"I've never seen that man close with anybody like that since the accident," Henrietta told me while unwrapping my forehead. "It's almost like you've replaced his poor family."
I shrugged-which she smacked me for-and laughed. "He's alright."
Henrietta blushed a little, "I'd say a little more than alright." She admitted.
"Do you...fancy him?" I asked her. Henrietta turned red.
"No! That would be highly inappropriate!" She shouted.
Henrietta smacked my arm once more.
"I swear, Char! You're always such a trouble maker!"
-x-
I sat in the second row(there were only two), there was a thirteen year old girl sitting to my left, and a twenty eight year old to my right. All of the girls I'd met so far were anxious and anticipating meeting their partner.
"Partner?" I'd asked. Some gave me looks to communicate my naivety, some looked pitifully down at me.
"Yes," one I particularly didn't like, Laura, I think her name was, "why did you think we had that personality test?"
This discovery made me realize what a fool I'd been. With whatever Sopespian wrote on my sheet, I've either scored somebody bearable, or some git I can't stand.
"Rise, Guard Trainees!" A rather nasty voice commanded.
We all stood, but I could hardly see because the Telmarines seem to be annoyingly tall people. I'm an average height, and I've felt like a midget my entire time here.
"You may sit, now." I heard Glozelle say calmly. We all sat, and I could finally see!
Glozelle was standing beside a serious looking man, who was standing directly in front of us. I guessed that was the Lord Miraz he'd told me about.
"Your matches have been made, and your partners are here. You are to train with them for three weeks, at the end of which you will have your survival test. I will call out the names of the trainees, and their partner will come and take them to the training grounds. Once I am finished, your tutors will meet you there. Understood?" He stated fairly.
The women surrounding me nodded and murmured amongst themselves.
"Gabriella, with Lord Rogust."
The woman to my right sighed and walked forward to meet a middle aged man with a grim look upon her face.
"Julia, with Lord Donnon."
Another older woman, off to meet another older man.
"Marie, with the young Lord Gregoire."
The thirteen year old to my right rose to meet and equally young looking fellow, blushing all the while.
"Charlotte," Miraz called out. He hesitated and checked the paper he'd been holding up again.
"You are to be paired with our honoured Prince Caspian." He stated.
Every female I'd been sitting by gasped and turned to glare at me. They scared me a little, to be honest. I stood up and fairly ran to the front, to avoid being murdered.
Glozelle was laughing. I glared darkly in his general direction.
Then, from the open doorway to my left, I spotted Caspian.
He had shoulder length wavy brown hair, and he was tan(like everybody else here). He was an entire head taller than me, he had a lean build and upon closer inspection, his eyes were a deep chocolate brown. His face was a bit feminine, but handsome, nonetheless. I could see why the women glared at me once they'd found out that Prince Caspian was my partner.
"Hello, Lady Charlotte." The Prince greeted me. His voice was deep and his accent was Spanish, but somehow it was loads more attractive on him than anybody else I'd so far met.
I breathed deeply. "Hi!" I replied. "You can call me Charlotte, if you'd like, Prince Caspian."
I looked into his beautiful eyes and found it hard to look away.
Caspian smiled, displaying his perfect pearly teeth. "You can call me Caspian, then, Charlotte." Butterflies fluttered in my stomach.
I'd imagine I'd act like a fool for the rest of my life if I spent it entirely around Caspian.
Caspian held his arm out to me, and I took it. He led me out the other door, and we walked through the court yard of the castle, holding most of the attention of the occupants throughout it. Caspian laughed a short laugh, and turned to me.
"Glozelle informed me that you were quite the special person." He told me.
I snorted(so attractive) and rolled my eyes. "I bet he did." I replied sarcastically.
Caspian smiled at me once more(thankfully), and looked back to the path we were taking. "He also informed me that if I hurt you, he'd find a way to inflict twice the damage to myself."
I choked. "What!?"
Caspian looked amused. "Are you insinuating that I am being untruthful?" He quipped, a nice smile on his (attractive)face.
I laughed a strangled laugh-"No! That was a what-the-hell-did-he-say? kind of What!" I informed him.
We shared a look, and burst into laughter. Caspian stood straighter and turned back to me, "Like I'd ever wish to harm you, Charlotte." He told me, staring into my eyes.
My heart started beating a little bit faster. I stared back in awe.
Caspian grabbed my arm, "We should get going." He stated, which made me realize that we'd stopped.
"Yes," I replied with a mischievous grin. "Lets." I raced off ahead of him.
"No fair!" he called out, and he ran after me.
-x-
I've started the planning for this story and it's going along fairly good. The plot is good and I've planned some chapters. What I mean to say is that I'm organizing this story in hopes that I can soon regularly update it. And finish it. It's going good so far!
Cheer me on, please :)
And review, please? It makes me smile!
